For leaders

During this unprecedented time, school leaders are working tirelessly to ensure the safety, security and continued learning for their students.

As you navigate the immediate crisis, here are some resources to help you make the best decisions to support remote learning.

Reasons to have a strategy

The following are scenarios for why you may want a comprehensive, thought-out plan for remote learning:

Think long term

As much as possible, think about the long-term as you evaluate the right technologies for your school community. Choose technology solutions that address the urgency at hand, but also ones that may play an effective role in instruction and learning once schools get back to normal.

Choose common tools

Identify technologies that the community as a whole will use. This will streamline training for teachers, communication to parents and students, and administration of usernames and passwords.

Train teachers

Once you have selected a solution(s), make sure your staff receives training on how to use it effectively—before using it with students. While time is of the essence, it is wise to invest in ensuring teachers are comfortable with the new technology.

Help for parents and students

Though nearly all tools have existing help, parents and students may need extra support. You can share additional helpful links or have staff members on—hand by phone to answer questions.

Creating a remote learning strategy

Deciding what you need

Your school community’s specific needs will influence what technology you secure. The following is a list of tools with various capabilities for you to consider, as well as links to examples.

School situation	Capability	Type of technology
Classrooms & parent conferences	A smaller group interacting with a leader	Video conferencing
Lectures & assemblies	Address a large group with limited interaction	Video streaming (also enables on-demand viewing of topics)
Messaging with students	Chat with the whole class or smaller groups of students, share resources	Instant messaging and group chats
Assigning and collecting homework	Exchanging, commenting on, sharing materials	Document sharing

Evaluating tools

Once you know what you require for remote learning, determine the requirements for each tool. Be sure to personally test the tools ahead of time, and consider having a teacher give a video conference lecture to a test group of students.

Don’t forget security

Securing your school’s data and protecting the privacy of your students is vital when selecting technology and providing it to your users. The same technology we use to protect the world’s financial and medical data can help you protect your staff and families.

During this crisis, we are offering extended, no cost access to MaaS360 (for securing devices), Cloud Identity (for user authentication), and Quad9, a solution that helps prevent mistakenly going to malicious sites.

Train your staff

Once you have selected a solution, make sure your staff understands its use. Provide lists of assets and sessions where your staff can try it out before using it with students. It is wise to invest in ensuring teachers are comfortable with the new technology.

Tool roll out

Recommending a tool to new users can go smoothly with a little planning:

Be positive
Address chief concerns
Have support ready
Check if the company provides additional resources

Tips for teachers: Customizable certificates

For parents & guardians